Minor HIll in Giles County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)

Sam Davis Capture Site

Minor Hill

By Don Morfe, April 24, 2014

1. Sam Davis Capture Site Marker

Inscription.

Sam Davis Capture Site. Minor Hill. On Nov 20, 1863, scout Sam Davis stopped here while carrying dispatches to Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg. According to local tradition, he was asleep under a plum tree when two members of the 7th Kansas Cavalry, disguised as Confederates, arrested and searched him. They found newspapers, maps, detailed descriptions of Federal fortifications, and other suspicious items in his boot and saddle seat. Taken to Union headquarters in Pulaski and charged with spying, Davis was tried, convicted, and sentenced to death within a week. Union Gen. Grenville M. Dodge promised Davis a pardon if he would reveal either the source of the papers or the location of the chief of Bragg’s scouts, Capt. E. Coleman (actually Capt. Henry B. Shaw, who was in jail with Davis at that time). Davis refused, saying, “If I had a thousand lives to live, I would give them all rather than betray a friend or the confidence of my informer.” He was hanged Friday morning, November 27. . . Confederate veteran James C. Braley and his wife, Sarah, lived near the capture site. Mrs. Braley kept a hand-drawn map that showed the Lamb’s Ferry Road and an old plum stump. After the land was sold, the new owner dug up the stump, but Mrs. Braley had no trouble locating the spot. Civic leader William C. Vaughan and the citizens of Minor Hill raised $250, matched by the state government, for a permanent monument on the site. Approximately 2,500 persons attended dedication ceremonies on July 22, 1926. Governor Austin Peay appealed to the young people to be loyal to their country and true to their friends, and Mrs. Braley pulled the cord to release the drapery covering the monument. . . (captions) . (upper left) Sam Davis Giles County Historical Society . (lower center) Gen. Greenville M. Dodge Courtesy Library of Congress . (upper center) Coleman’s Scouts reunion, Nashville, 1866, with Sam Davis's brother John standing in center with Capt. Henry B. Shaw (“Coleman”) seated in front of him Courtesy Tennessee Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans . (upper right) Giles County Courthouse, ca. 1863-1864, showing Union troops in formation Courtesy United Daughters of the Confederacy

On Nov 20, 1863, scout Sam Davis stopped here while carrying dispatches to Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg. According to local tradition, he was asleep under a plum tree when two members of the 7th Kansas Cavalry, disguised as Confederates, arrested and searched him. They found newspapers, maps, detailed descriptions of Federal fortifications, and other suspicious items in his boot and saddle seat. Taken to Union headquarters in Pulaski and charged with spying, Davis was tried, convicted, and sentenced to death within a week. Union Gen. Grenville M. Dodge promised Davis a pardon if he would reveal either the source of the papers or the location of the chief of Bragg’s scouts, Capt. E. Coleman (actually Capt. Henry B. Shaw, who was in jail with Davis at that time). Davis refused, saying, “If I had a thousand lives to live, I would give them all rather than betray a friend or the confidence of my informer.” He was hanged Friday morning, November 27.

Confederate veteran James C. Braley and his wife, Sarah, lived near the capture site. Mrs. Braley kept a hand-drawn map that showed the Lamb’s Ferry Road and an old plum stump. After the land was sold, the new owner dug up the stump, but Mrs. Braley had no trouble locating the spot. Civic leader William C. Vaughan and the citizens of Minor Hill raised $250, matched by the

By Don Morfe, April 24, 2014

2. Sam Davis Capture Site Marker

state government, for a permanent monument on the site. Approximately 2,500 persons attended dedication ceremonies on July 22, 1926. Governor Austin Peay appealed to the young people to be loyal to their country and true to their friends, and Mrs. Braley pulled the cord to release the drapery covering the monument.

Location. 35° 2.336′ N, 87° 10.41′ W. Marker is in Minor HIll, Tennessee, in Giles County. Marker is at the intersection of Sam Davis Circle and Monument Drive, on the right when traveling south on Sam Davis Circle. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Minor Hill TN 38473, United States of America.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. This page originally submitted on July 8, 2014, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 427 times since then and 82 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on July 8, 2014, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.

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